Earth-auger



(No Model.) 1 l A. P. BAUER.

EARTH AUGER. No. 601,116. Patented Mar. 22,1898.

UNITED STATES PATENT FFICE.

EARTH-AUG ER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 601,116, dated March 22, 1898.

Application 1116a April 23, 1896.

To all whmn it may concern:

Be it known that I, ALONZO F. BAUER,a citizen of the United States,residing at Fort Madison, in the county of Lee and State of Iowa, have invented a new and useful Earth-Auger, of which the following is a specification.

- My invention relates to improvements in earth-augers,.and has for its object to provide improved means for securing adjustable blades to the head.

Further objects and advantages of this invention will appear in the following description, and the novel features thereof will be particularly pointed out in the appended claim. I

Inthe drawings, Figure 1 is a perspective view of an auger constructed in accordance with my invention, a handle being shown in dotted lines extended at one side of the shaft for operation contiguous to a fenceor wall. Fig. 2 is a similar view of the head inverted, one of the blades and its securing-bolt being omitted. Fig. 3 is a detail view of one of the blades detached. Fig. 4 is a detail transverse section parallel with and in the plane of one of the securing-bolts, the same being taken through the securing-arm of the blade and the contiguous portion of the head across the corner of the latter. Fig. 5 is a detail side view of one of the bolts detached.

Similar numerals of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the figures of the drawings.

1 designates the head of the improved auger, which is preferably triangular in plan and is provided with depending outer and inner flanges 2 and 3, spaced apart to form parallel-sided seats in which the arms 4 of the blades 5 are fitted. The upper sides of the seats are preferably concaved to correspond with the slight curvature of the arms 4, said curvature being designed to prevent vibration of the blades when secured in place in the seats and also to provide for longitudinal adjustment of the arms to secure a greater or less spread of the upper portions of the blades without materially changing the relative positions of the lower extremities or tips of the blades. Hence said arms are preferably curved concentrically with the lower extremities of the blades or form arcs of circles struck from the points of the blades as centers. The

Serial No. 588,722. (No model.)

outer flange 2 is cut away contiguous to the angles of the head to form openings through which'the arms of the blades are inserted, and the body portion of the head is perforated contiguous to-the angles of the inner flange to form openings 6 for the reception of the securing-bolts 7. The shanks of these bolts terminate at their lower ends in hooks 8 to straddle and engage the arms of the blades and the contiguous portions of the flanges 2, said arms being provided at intervals with rounded notches 9, either of which is adapted to be arranged opposite a bolt to set the blades at any desired distance apart. The bolts are engaged abovethe plane of the head by thumb-nuts 10, which may be manipulated to tighten the bolts when required.

The hooks 8 are provided with beveled or inclined faces 11, which bear against beveled surfaces 12 at the outer sides of the exterior flange 2, said cooperating beveled faces serving to draw the lower extremity of the bolt outwardly as the thumb-nut is tightened,and this outward movement of the lower or hooked portion of the bolt serves to, force the arm of the blade against the inner surface of the exterior flange 2, whereby it is held'from vibration and whereby a corresponding position of all of the blades is insured. Furthermore, the shank of the bolt is provided contiguous to its hooked extremity and upon its inner side with an enlargement or boss 13, which serves to form an efflcient bearing against the side surface of the arm of the blade, and as this enlargement or boss is beveled in the opposite direction to the face 11 it will be seen that the arm is crowded tightly against the exterior flange.

The described construction of the hookbolt with relation to the arm of the blade and the head provides means by which the bladearm may be held in position by binding against the same on each of its four sides, and said hook-shaped bolt exerts a wedg'ing action against the blade-arm 4 and the flanged head, because the faces 11 13 of the bolt engage with the flange 2 and the arm 4, respectively, to draw the parts together tightly when the winged nut 10 is adjusted to draw the bolt upward against the head.

By reference to Fig. 5 it will be seen that the clampingface 11 diverges or inclines away from the boss or bearing-face 13 and that the latter face 13 is itself slightly inclined away from the face 11, thus forming on the bolt-head a space or throat which tapers and opens outwardly from the closed end of the bolt-head. The bolt-head is applied to have the inclined bearing-face 13 press or bear against the inner face of the blade-arm,while the inclined face 11 of the bolt-head bears against the outer face of the flange 2 of the angular tool-head. As the blade-arm 4 is seated edgewise in the bolt-head and rests edgewise against the angular tool-head and as one face of the blade-arm rests against the flange 2 and the face 13 of the bolt bears against the other face of the blade-arm,it will be seen that the blade-arm is clamped or held 011 each of its four sides.

The described construction of the bolt and its arrangement with relation to the bladearm and the angular head provides an improved fastening means by which the blade is secured so firmly in place that it cannot be displaced or worked loose when the implement is turned and twisted in the operation of digging a post-hole. The reverse inclination of the bearing-faces 11 13 of the bolthead is useful because they give to the bolt a wedging action with relation to the bladearm and to the flange 2 of the angular head, and such wedging not only tends to hold the blade firmly in place, but it compensates for the slight wear that may take place on the arts.

The shaft It is secured at its lower end to the center of the head and is provided at its upper end with a coupling 15, having a transverse sleeve in which is fitted the adjustable handle 10. This handle is adapted to be engaged at its center by the sleeve, as shown in full lines in Fig. 1, or at a point contiguous to one end when it is desired to operate c011- tiguous to a fence or wall, and it will be seen that a step-by-step rotary movement in a uniform direction may be imparted to the auger when operating close to an obstruction by inserting one end of the handle and turning the device until checked by the obstacle and then withdrawing the handle and replacing it as at the beginning of said movement. In connection with the coupling I also preferably employ a thumb-screw 17, by which the handle may be locked at the desired adjustment.

In addition to the curvature of the blades 5 inwardly or toward the centers of the arcs from which the arms 1 are struck, and hence in the planes of said arms, the blades have a lateral curvature or twist which imparts a spiral shape thereto and causes the extremity of each blade to occupy a position to one side of the succeeding blade and pointing in the direction of a circular path traversed by the point of the blade during the rotation of the head. In other words, the spiral twist which is imparted to each blade causes the points of the blades, in addition to inclining downwardly and forwardly in the direction of rotation, to occupy a position in a circle which is common to the points of all of the blades. The advantage of this construction resides in the fact that it imparts an an gcr-like action to the device, each blade acting throughout the length of its cutting edge, and hence gradually widening the hole. Thus the anger is self-feeding and requires no downward pressure, except at the beginning of the operation, to cause the lower extremities of the blades to engage the soil. Furthermore, each blade is arranged cross-sectionally at an angle with its arm, whereby the cutting edges of the blades are the outermost portions thereof and incline crosssectionally inward from the outermost or cutting edges to detach soil from the walls of a hole and force it inwardly toward the center of the auger.

Having described my invention, what I claim is- In an earthauger, the combination with an angular head having the flanges forming seats, and a series of blades each provided with an angular arm which is fitted in the head to bear 011 one edge against the head and on one side against a flange thereon, of the hooked clamping-bolts each having a head provided on one side with an inclined bearing-face 11 and 011 its shank with the reverselyinclined boss or face 13, and said bolt-head applied to have a wedgin g action on the bladearm by its face 13 bearing against the inner side of said blade-arm and its face 11 against the outer side of a flange on said angular head, and tightening-nuts screwed on the bolts to draw the heads thereof against the lower edges of the blade-arms, whereby the arm of each blade is clamped both edgewise and laterally on the four sides thereof by and between the flanged head and one hook-bolt, substantially as described.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own I have hereto affixed my signature in the presence of two witnesses.

ALONZO F. BAUER.

.Vitnesses:

CY KENNEDY, J. M. CoNLEE. 

